Posted on

When God Make A Point, He Truly Makes A Point!

Unholy Fire

Thankfully, we live in an era where God, in his grace and mercy, has made a way that through Jesus so we can approach his throne with confidence and boldness. Jesus is our High Priest who ever lives to intercede for us. As our priestly representative, he bore in his body the brunt of God’s holy wrath for our sin and our perpetual un-holiness. And by his sacrifice, we can stand before God and not be consumed. By his blood, we are saved. By his stripes, we are healed.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 10:1-3

Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown. Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, contrary to his command. So fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD. Moses then said to Aaron, ‘This is what the LORD spoke of when he said: “Among those who approach me I will show myself holy; in the sight of all the people I will be honored.” Aaron remained silent.

I imagine if we had been front row witnesses to this terrifying scene, we would have done as Aaron did: Nothing! He couldn’t speak. All he could do was stand there in stunned silence, trying to comprehend what had just happened to his sons. Imagine in the twinkling of an eye seeing your loved ones incinerated by the holiness of God. Imagine trying to come to terms with a loving God who had just revealed his holiness in the most dreadful way imaginable; who had just demonstrated in reality what he had been warning his people about verbally: not to take his holiness lightly.

As I read this story I realize how much I long to behold the glory of the Lord—but only on my terms. However, this sobering story makes me wonder if could I really ever gaze upon God’s holiness and not experience the Nadab and Abihu effect. I seriously doubt it. This cautionary tale is an unforgettable and sad reminder that God is holy and demands holiness from his people—especially from those who minster before him in particular as representatives of his presence to his people.

Not only is it a sad reminder, it is a unforgettable reminder: We must not take God lightly or treat the holy as common. To anyone who saw what happened to these two priests, this would be an object lesson they would never forget. When God chooses to make a point, he truly makes a point!

Thankfully, we live in an era where God, in his grace and mercy, has made a way that through Jesus we can approach his throne with confidence and boldness. (Hebrews 4:16) Jesus is our High Priest who ever lives to intercede for us. As our priestly representative, he bore in his own body the brunt of God’s holy wrath for our sin and our perpetual un-holiness. And by his sacrifice, we can stand before God and not be consumed. By his blood, we are saved. By his stripes, we are healed.

God help us, short of the Nadab and Abihu experience, to never forget the undeserved privilege of knowing Jesus and inexpressible honor of being the receiving end of his sacrifice when he was made our sin offering. God made a point in Jesus’ death, and what an unforgettable point it was!

Now even though through Christ’s substitutionary death we are invited to come boldly into God’s holy presence, let us temper our confidence before God’s throne with humble gratitude that we are standing in a place that in all reality should seal our death sentence to receive grace instead of fire. We don’t deserve to be there; we deserve the punishment of Nadab and Abihu. Yet through Jesus, we are declared holy and thereby approach the throne of a holy God as his holy people.

Truthfully, for reasons polar opposite of Aaron’s, all I can do is stand before God in stunned silence—but not in terror and grief, but in thankfulness and gratitude.

Going Deeper: Holiness is a very big deal to God. Though he may not deal with our un-holiness the same way he did with Nadab and Abihu, thankfully, it is no less important to him that we walk before him as his holy people. Here is a prayer that I am offering today—you may want to join me in it: “Almighty God, you are holy. That’s what the angels around your throne cry day and night; the citizens of heaven who fall before your throne offer up a continual cry of “holy”. The essence of your being is holiness. But I confess, I don’t come close to comprehending your holiness; I take it for granted; I affirm it in the “Christian-ese” that I have learned to speak. But I really don’t get it. Father, help me to develop a greater appreciation for the truth, “Among those who approach me, I will show myself holy.” I am aware that I tolerate some unholy things in my life—and I want to rid myself of those—but I’m also sure that there are some things that I don’t even realize that are unholy. I suspect that Nadab and Abihu didn’t deliberately violate their calling—most likely they were just too casual in approaching you. I don’t want to be too casual, to treat sin lightly, to take my relationship with you and my calling to stand as a priest before you flippantly. Father, teach me to be holy; destroy in me anything that could destroy me. Purify me and make me holy to the highest degree in my daily, hourly, moment-by-moment walk with you.”

Posted on

The Glory of the Lord

As New Testament believers, do you realize that we have an even greater, more awe-inspiring revelation of the glory of the Lord than what we ever see in the Old Testament consuming fire of God? How so? In no greater, more dramatic, life-changing, ever-present form, God has revealed his glory in the incarnation—the birth, life, ministry, death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ. Yes, we have beheld God’s glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Journey// Focus: Leviticus 9:22-24

After presenting the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offering, Aaron stepped down from the altar. Then Moses and Aaron went into the Tabernacle, and when they came back out, they blessed the people again, and the glory of the Lord appeared to the whole community. Fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When the people saw this, they shouted with joy and fell face down on the ground.

I long for the glory of the Lord to be revealed! The physical manifestation of the sum of all that he is—the beauty of his love, righteousness, kindness, perfection, power, grace, mercy, goodness, and justice. I long for that in my personal times with God, and I long for that every time the spiritual community I lead gathers to worship our great and glorious God. My sense is that you do too!

After the dedication of Aaron as high priest and his sons as priests over Israel, after the sacrifices for the ordination were made, after the newly minted high priest had lifted his hands and blessed the people, the glory of the Lord showed up. And boy, did it show up! Fire blazed from his presence and the sacrificial offerings were vaporized in a dramatic blast of holy fire from the Eternal Presence. And the people did what you and I would have done—what others throughout Scripture did in the manifest presence of God: they fell flat on their faces in awestruck wonder and holy fear of the Lord. There are no words in the library of human language that would adequately describe the human emotions experienced in this moment, except perhaps, WOW!

The glory of God’s presence—that is what I long for.

At various times throughout the Bible, God appeared in similar fashion to his people. He appeared in holy fire to Moses in a burning bush in the desert of Midian. (Exodus 3:1-6) He appeared in a pillar of fire before the Israelites to guide their journey to the Promised Land. (Exodus 40:35-38) He appeared to Moses similarly as he gave the law on Mt. Sinai and when he revealed himself while hiding Moses in the cleft of the rock. (Exodus 24:15-17, 33:18-23) God’s glory also filled the tabernacle when it was dedicated. (Exodus 40:34) And later, the glory of God filled the temple in Jerusalem as King Solomon dedicated it. (1 Kings 8:10-11) The glory also appeared when the prophet Elijah called down fire from heaven on the false prophets. (1Kings 18:38-39)

That’s what I’m talking about—that is the glory I long to see. But wait, there’s more. Did you realize that we have an even greater, more awe-inspiring revelation of the glory of God as New Testament believers? How so? In no greater, more dramatic, life-changing form has God’s glory been revealed than in the incarnation—the birth, life, death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Apostle John tells us,

The Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (John 1:14)

In Jesus Christ, your personal Lord and Savior, the One who lives in you, is with you always, has inhabited you through the very Spirit of God, is preparing a place for you and will come again to receive you unto himself with great brilliance, power and justice, you have,

The visible image of the invisible God.
who existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,
and through whom God created everything
in the heavenly realms and on earth.
He made the things we can see
and the things we can’t see—
such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world.
Everything was created through him and for him.
He existed before anything else,
and he holds all creation together.
Christ is also the head of the church,
which is his body.
He is the beginning,
supreme over all who rise from the dead.
So he is first in everything.
For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. (Colossians 1:15-20)

Congratulations! By his grace, you have beheld the glory of God—the sum and substance of all he is: his righteousness, his holiness, truth, his love, his wisdom and his grace!

Going Deeper: Rejoice this day, for God has revealed his glory to you. How blessed you truly are!

Posted on

What Makes You So Special?

Holiness is a very big deal to God! That’s because he is holy, and so that you could be his very own, he has made you holy, too. Think about this: God chose you, called you and consecrated you to a life of holiness, which in turn, makes you a part of a royal priesthood—perhaps not vocationally, but for sure, spiritually. And while the world may have convinced you that this idea of holiness is dull, it’s anything but. It’s what makes you God’s special possession.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 8:12

Then Moses poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head, anointing him and making him holy for his work.

The ordination of Aaron as high priest over Israel and his sons as priests was a spectacular moment in the establishment of the worship practices of Israel. Not only was it a holy moment for Aaron and his sons, and not only was it a memorable experience for the nation, which would need holy men to mediate the presence of God on their behalf, but it was a very serious moment for God. So serious was his intentions for the priesthood that he told Aaron,

Do not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting for seven days, until the days of your ordination are completed, for your ordination will last seven days. What has been done today was commanded by the Lord to make atonement for you.  You must stay at the entrance to the tent of meeting day and night for seven days and do what the Lord requires, so you will not die; for that is what I have been commanded.” (Leviticus 8:33-35)

So holy was this moment—and the words of warning that God gave to Aaron—that we are told, “Aaron and his sons did everything the Lord commanded through Moses.” (Leviticus 8:36) Unfortunately, the very day after their seven days of ordination were complete, two of Aaron’s sons “offered unholy fire on the altar” and the holy anger of the Lord struck the offending priest, and they died instantly in the presence of Aaron and Israel.

Sad story, yet what a solemn reminder of not only the holiness of God, but the seriousness with which he treats the priesthood. Now that might sound a bit ominous, but the idea of seriousness is not only a negative, but a positive. God established the priesthood that his people might be brought into and kept in a close, loving and intimate relationship with him. And what has been clearly seen so far in Exodus and Leviticus is that intimacy with God requires the mediation of his holiness: God is holy, his people must understand this, and they must both live in holiness unto the Lord and approach his presence in holiness. It was this very holiness that the priests were to represent and ensure through their lives, their roles and the sacrifices that they ritually performed for themselves and the people.

Now here is the deal: God desires that all of his people—that includes you and me—live in holiness and help others to both understand and approach God in holiness,

Seek to live a clean and holy life, for one who is not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that not one of you will fail to find God’s best blessings…You have not had to stand face to face with terror, flaming fire, gloom, darkness, and a terrible storm as the Israelites did at Mount Sinai when God gave them his laws. …But you have come right up into Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to the gathering of countless happy angels; and to the church, composed of all those registered in heaven; and to God who is Judge of all; and to the spirits of the redeemed in heaven, already made perfect; and to Jesus himself, who has brought us his wonderful new agreement; and to the sprinkled blood, which graciously forgives instead of crying out for vengeance. (Hebrews 12:14-15, 18, 22-24

Yes, God established a vocational priesthood in Israel, and yes he has established priestly roles for the new community in the office of bishop and pastor, but would to God that all his people represent his holiness to their fellow believers and to the world. Consider two passages, one from the Old Testament and the other from the New, that give us a glimpse into the heart of God.

Exodus 19:3-6 says that when Moses went up to the heights of Mt. Sinai, God spoke to him these amazing words concerning his purpose in delivering Israel from Egypt: “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”

In the New Testament, the Apostle Peter refines the words spoken on Mt. Sinai to Israel and now applies them to God’s new community, the church: “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)

God chose you to be his. He called you to serve him. He consecrated you in righteousness. He so treasures you that he has placed upon you a calling both to be holy and to declare his holiness to believers and non-believers alike in a way that invites them into a loving and intimate experience of God.

What makes you God’s treasured possession? He chose you, called you and consecrated you. According to Peter, that makes you and me pretty special indeed.

Going Deeper: You are a priest in God’s family. So be holy. And so live that you paint a compelling and winsome witness of the holiness of God.

Posted on

The Sacrifice of Thanks

God Deserves Our Gratitude

God has called us to be a thankful people. Choosing to be grateful as a life response will unleash God’s power to redeem our circumstance, good or bad, which in turn unleashes divine potential to fundamentally change us in every dimension of our lives.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 7:12

If you present your peace offering as an expression of thanksgiving, the usual animal sacrifice must be accompanied by various kinds of bread made without yeast—thin cakes mixed with olive oil, wafers spread with oil, and cakes made of choice flour mixed with olive oil.

It would be easy to get overwhelmed in the details of these sacrifices, but don’t miss the bigger point of this particular verse: an express of thanksgiving. Three times between Leviticus 7:11-15, the theme of gratitude was said to be an essential part of the peace offering.

Do you realize the power of our thanksgiving to God? I don’t think you really do? Nor do I—not really. We get it to a degree, but I doubt that we really grasp the transformative power that God has built into the sacrifice of our thanksgiving unto him. The habit of giving thanks is a fundamental sign of our awareness of God, his loving rule over our lives, our spiritual adoption into his family, and his constant presence in our circumstances. That’s why Ambrose, a 4th century bishop said, “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.”

For reasons far beyond our ability to totally comprehend, God has called us to offer thanks to him—early and often. Let me suggest a few reasons why this is not only important to God, but self–benefiting to us:

      1. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-centeredness. Becoming self-focused is pretty easy in our selfish, narcissistic, entitlement culture. Gratitude forces us to recognize that God is at the center of the universe—not us—and that it’s only by his generosity we can even take in oxygen. Jeremiah wrote in Lamentations 3:22-23, “It’s only his mercy keeping us from utter destruction. His loving-kindness begins afresh each day” Giving thanks forces us into a perspective that sees every second of life as a gift from God. Today you got a new day because he said, “Wake up; I’m loaning you the breath of life again today.” Expressing that kind of fundamental gratitude daily keeps you focused on God’s goodness and not you —it keeps God at the center and self in check.
      2. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-pity. Practicing gratitude forces us into an awareness that sees God’s hand and God’s plan even in times of unfairness, disappointment and loss. King David sang in Psalm 30:11-12, “You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. I will give you thanks forever!” Thankfulness releases God’s perspective when you’d otherwise see only emotional pain behind you and hardship on the path ahead. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything; pray about it—with a thankful heart. Then God will bless you with peace that no one can completely explain—peace that will control the way you think and feel.” Bonhoeffer wrote, “Gratitude changes the pangs of memory into a tranquil joy.” A heart of gratitude will keep the spigot open to an uneven flow: my pain for God’s perspective—and the surpassing peace that floods my soul through grateful prayer.
      3. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of low self-esteem. It forces me to see how blessed I truly am: for what I have, not what I don’t, who I am, not who I ain’t, where I’m going, not where I’m stuck. What do we have? Salvation! That’s why Paul ended 2 Corinthians 9 with this outburst of gratitude: “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” Who are we? James says, “Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens…He chose to give new birth to us. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.” (James 1:17-18) Where we headed? Peter says, “How fortunate we are to have this Father! He has given new life and everything to live for, including a future in heaven! And God is keeping careful watch over both us and our future.” (2 Peter 1:3-5) No matter how down you get about your life, on your worst day you’re still an eternally-saved, heaven-bound, cherished-child of God! Gratitude anchors your self-esteem and eternal worth in that Divine reality!
      4. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-perpetuating poverty. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 9:12-13, “You show gratitude through your generosity, and moved by God’s extravagance through you, those you help will respond by praying for your need.” Gratitude forces generosity. And the more you give thanks, the more God will give you to be thankful for. Andrew Murray said, “To be thankful for what we’ve received is the surest way to receive more.” God is serious about blessing our gratitude! As A.W. Tozer said, it’s, “an offering precious in the sight of God, and its one that the poorest of us can make and be not poorer but richer for having made it.”

Here is the deal: God has called us to be a thankful people. Choosing to be grateful as a life response will unleash God’s power to redeem our circumstance, good or bad, which in turn unleashes divine potential to fundamentally change us in every dimension of our lives. Sarah Ban Breathnach offered this profound thought:

You simply won’t be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you.

Are you grateful? Then tell God…and don’t stop!

Going Deeper: Take five minutes to list everything for which you are grateful to God on a piece of paper. Don’t stop until the time is up. My guess you will not have exhausted the reasons when you are done.

Posted on

Being Right With God Requires Being Right With My Neighbor

Take Care With How You Treat People

Whether it was the Lord’s Prayer, the Great Commandment, the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus or any number of other passages in Scripture, you cannot deny that your relationship with your neighbor is as important to God as your relationship with him. God is clear that you honor, serve, obey and love him as you do the same with your spouse, children, customers, fellow workers and employer, just to name a few. So take great care with how you treat people.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 6:1-7

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Suppose one of you sins against your associate and is unfaithful to the Lord. Suppose you cheat in a deal involving a security deposit, or you steal or commit fraud, or you find lost property and lie about it, or you lie while swearing to tell the truth, or you commit any other such sin. If you have sinned in any of these ways, you are guilty. You must give back whatever you stole, or the money you took by extortion, or the security deposit, or the lost property you found, or anything obtained by swearing falsely. You must make restitution by paying the full price plus an additional 20 percent to the person you have harmed. On the same day you must present a guilt offering. As a guilt offering to the Lord, you must bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of equal value. Through this process, the priest will purify you before the Lord, making you right with him, and you will be forgiven for any of these sins you have committed.”

Did you catch that? If we sin against our neighbor, we have been unfaithful to God! How is it that we miss this when it is the clear teaching of Scripture—both Old Testament and New? Yet so many people who fancy themselves as being close to God are anything but because they allow such poor relationships to exist in their relational sphere.

So let’s be very clear about this since God himself was so clear: nothing is more important to God than shalom within the family of God. We cannot harm a human relationship without damaging our heavenly relationship with the Father of us all. Likewise, if we have been harmed by another yet refuse to forgive, or forgive but somehow convince ourselves that forgiveness does not require us to participate in repairing the relationship, we are guilty of unfaithfulness to God.

Think that is too strong? Well, consider what Jesus said as he taught us how to pray God’s Kingdom and Divine will into our lives. There was an undeniable condition that Jesus added to effectively praying the Lord’s Prayer: “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15)

Whether it was the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:36-40) or the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus (John 17:20-25) or a any number of other passages in Scripture, you cannot deny that your relationships with your neighbor (see Luke 10:25-37 for a definition of who your neighbor is) is as important to God as your relationship with him. God’s clear expectation is that you honor, serve, obey and love him as you do the same with your spouse, children, customers, fellow workers and employer, just to name a few.

So my advice to you is, take great care with how you treat people. And as far as it is possible, as much as it depends on you, make and keep things right with everyone. (Romans 12:18) In fact, your acceptable sacrifice of worship to God (Romans 12:1-2) is contingent upon how you live out your faith with people (Romans 12:3-21).

Yeah, it’s a big deal. So get right and stay right with people. Your Father is counting on you!

Going Deeper: Read Romans 12 and meditate on verses 1-2 in light of the rest of the chapter, verse 3-21.

Posted on

Unintentional Sin Is Still Sin

What Is Sin?

To downgrade sin, or to do away with it entirely, is to show contempt for the God who is holy. When we reduce the sinfulness of sin, we do away with the need for a Savior—which is the whole point of the Bible. Yet there is a growing number of Christians today who do just that. What an affront to the doctrine of salvation, and to the cross of Christ.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 5:17-19

Suppose you sin by violating one of the Lord’s commands. Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin. For a guilt offering, you must bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of equal value. Through this process the priest will purify you from your unintentional sin, making you right with the Lord, and you will be forgiven. This is a guilt offering, for you have been guilty of an offense against the Lord.

“Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin.” Wow—that’s harsh. But yes, sin is sin, no matter the good intentions or unawareness of the sinner. Sin is a very big deal to a holy God, and even though as modern readers we live at a time where the offensiveness of certain types of sin have been downgraded, if not done away with altogether, we would do well to remember that God has not changed his mind one iota regarding the matter.

Dr. Karl Menninger, the famed psychiatrist and found of the Menninger Clinic, wrote a book called Whatever Happened to Sin, in which he tells us that the word “sin” has practically disappeared from our vocabulary. And yet, the sense of guilt remains in our hearts and minds. Likewise, the outcome of sin is plainly evident in the world—both near and far. Yes, sin is still sin, even if sophisticated man says it doesn’t.

Pride is still sin. So is inappropriate anger. Cheating, too. Mistreating the poor, contempt, lying, unbiblical divorce, selfishness, gluttony, abortion, homosexuality, heterosexual lust in the heart, pornography, disrespect for authority, laziness, stinginess—you get the picture. Or, if you don’t, here is how pastor-theologian John Piper puts it:

What is sin?
It is the glory of God not honored.
The holiness of God not reverenced.
The greatness of God not admired.
The power of God not praised.
The truth of God not sought.
The wisdom of God not esteemed.
The beauty of God not treasured.
The goodness of God not savored.
The faithfulness of God not trusted.
The commandments of God not obeyed.
The justice of God not respected.
The wrath of God not feared.
The grace of God not cherished.
The presence of God not prized.
The person of God not loved.
That is sin.

We could fill page after page of a very long book with the ways, big and small, obvious and subtle, willful and intentional, that human beings violate the law of God. Sin is missing the mark, whether it is by miles or inches, and it is an offense to God, who to be true to his just and righteous character, must either punish it or find a means to forgive it.

To downgrade or to do away with sin is show contempt for the Creator and the cross of Christ. When we reduce the sinfulness of sin, we do away with the need for a Savior—which is the whole point of the Bible. Yet there is a growing number of Christians today doing just that. Far too many have been lured into a false gospel that believes, apparently as he evolves into a better, kinder deity, that God now grades on the curve, that if the person’s heart was right, or if they just didn’t know that what they were doing was wrong, that God will give special consideration when grading their final.

In reality, that is a theology of works—that we are saved by our own goodness and not by grace through faith and not of works. In other words, if a person is morally good enough, or if they were ignorant of their sinfulness, God will take their goodness and their ignorance into account. After all, how could God assign good and unwitting people to punishment, not to mention, perish the thought, eternal damnation?

What an affront to the most basic tenet of the Bible: that salvation is by grace through faith, and not by works—sola fide, justification by faith alone. The fact that even sin for which we are unware brings guilt before God and must be punished is a clear reminder of that. Obviously, all sin was a big deal to a holy God, and if his people were to live in holiness, they would need a way to deal with the sins they committed along the way.

Between Leviticus 5-7 God shows his people how to deal with their sin and guilt through a series of sin offerings. And while we may be tempted to pass over these sin offerings since we no longer live under this system—thankfully—yet there are several eternal realities that this section of Scripture teaches us. Let me offer three:

  1. God is utterly holy, and sin is a violation of his holiness—always!
  2. Man is thoroughly sinful, and therefore deserving of judgment. The fact that sin may be unintentional and unknown and still render the sinner guilty before a holy God reminds us that there is none righteous, not even on our best day. We tend to think that God judges sin based on our motives, but this clearly shows that even the littlest sin drops our standing before him. Fallen man was born with a sin nature, and since it won’t be eradicated this side of heaven, it must be atoned for—some how in some way.
  3. Forgiveness is always available. Atonement for sin is made through God’s path to forgiveness. God, in his grace and mercy, made it possible for his people to have the guilt of their sin removed so they could live in right standing before him. Of course, we now know in light of the New Testament revelation that the Old Testament system of sacrifice was a temporary placeholder until the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ was made, but it was still a beautiful picture of a God who longed to forgive, not punish, the guilt of his people. But they had to do it his way.

We still do—do it God’s way, that is! And God still longs to forgive—that is just who God is. But we block the flow of the forgiveness of the forgiving God when we join the growing trend of those removing the sinfulness of sin. We need to remember that whenever sin is removed by any other means than through repentant faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus, we have just removed the whole purpose for the Incarnation: that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost by giving his life as the ransom for their sin.

Going Deeper: Have you found yourself making excuses for sin—either yours or another’s? That in itself is sin, and a very serious one at that. Repent, and ask God to give you a heart that is hyper-sensitive to sin. Far from being a bad thing, that is a very healthy way to live and the path to Divine blessing.

Posted on

Obliterating Sin

“Making them right with the Lord!” What a power-packed phrase, wouldn’t you say! This is the great effort of God and that is the great need of man. And through God’s initiative, both through the Levitical system of sacrifice and the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice of his Son and our Savior, that has been made possible.

Going Deep // Focus: Leviticus 4:20

By this sacrifice for sin, the priest will purify the people, making them right with the Lord, and they will be forgiven.

Making them right with the Lord! So much is packed into that phrase, wouldn’t you say! That is the great effort of God and that is the great need of man. And through God’s initiative, both through the Levitical system of sacrifice and the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice of his Son and our Savior, that has been made possible.

You see, sin, that which makes us un-right with God, is number one the problem of the human race! All other problems stem from this. Both our acts of sin and our Adamic sinfulness separate us from our Creator and Provider. God is pure and cannot tolerate impurity. Nor can he bless the impure. And because God is not only holy, but also just, his justice demands punishment for sin—our sin. And the only proper punishment for sin that can satisfy an utterly holy God is death for the sinner.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. …The wages of sin is death… But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations.” (Romans 3:23, 6:23a, Exodus 34:7)

Houston, we have a problem! We are sinful and can do nothing to change that; God is holy, and cannot tolerate sin. Death to the sinner!

But God, who is rich in mercy and ceaseless in grace, has provided a way of escape for the sinner. Under the Old covenant, a sacrificial system was established that transferred the guilt of the guilty onto the sacrifice and thus absolved God’s righteous anger. Throughout the Old Testament this plan is made plain, and specifically in Leviticus 4 and 5, the phrase is repeated: offer sacrifice for sin…making them pure…they will be forgiven.

But, thank God, our Holy Creator went a step further and established a new and better covenant with his people: He sent the perfect sacrifice, his one and only Son, to be the sacrifice for our sins. And the offering up us Jesus on the cross as the atonement for our sin not only satisfied God’s righteous wrath and absolved the guilt for our sins, but the blood of his sacrifice obliterated our guilty standing before God created and perpetuated by our Adamic sinfulness. And best of all, his death was the once-for-all sacrifice to end all sin offerings—we don’t have to offer it over and over again.

And the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. … Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. …the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus our Lord. (Isaiah 53:6, 1 Peter 3:18, Romans 6:23b)

Hallelujah! Once cleansed, the blood of Jesus keeps on cleansing us from all unrighteousness:

But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. (1 John 1:7-9)

What a God, who made a way in the Old Covenant for his people to be made right with him, at least temporarily, until the time for the permanent, perfect offering of his Son, our wonderful, merciful Savior, who offered himself as the once-for-all sacrifice for our sin.

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. (Psalm 32:1-2)

Blessed indeed! We have been made right with God.

Going Deeper With God: As you consider that your sin is permanently covered by Christ’s sacrifice, you may want to make this prayer your prayer: “Holy God, I thank you for Jesus, by whose sacrifice I can call you ‘Dear Father.’ By his death, I am pure and brought near to you. My sins are forgiven—all my sinful past is erased, my guilt from today is removed, my future failures have already been taken care of, my mistakes are redeemed for the glory of God. I am made right with you. How loved I am how blessed I am! I am forever grateful.”